His first day after moving to the Diamond Settlement had been truly exciting!

Adaman gifted Snowflake a Diamond Clan uniform. Finally he could get out of his hospital clothes!

The shirt was a bit big on him, but it came with a verrry spacious hood! Wearing the hood up hid quite a bit of scarring that his bandage didn't. The feeling of something on his head seemed familiar too, though he couldn't figure out why.

Perhaps he missed having the full bandage wrap or something? It did hide a lot more of his disfigurement.

Regardless, he wore the hood up in public, which decreased a lot of the staring.

Next he was introduced to all of the Clan members. That one went less smoothly, given only a third of them spoke Galarian. If he wanted to live here, he'd need to learn the local language, or at least enough to get by.

That wouldn't deter him from trying! He would do his best to learn their dialect in whatever way he could! Or perhaps ask Melli if things weren't working out.

Speaking of Melli, they now live in the same tent together! Snowflake was happy to move in, though Melli's reaction was more questionable.

When Adaman dropped him off, Melli answered the door looking rather frazzled. He mentioned something about cleaning up, though it still looked pretty messy as far as Snowflake could tell.

The tent was bigger than expected. A bunk bed with a solid frame, wooden floors, a weird shrine at the back, a shelf for storage, and a stove in the middle with two cushions stacked next to it. Melli mentioned getting a few extras for him and Caboose, as well as clearing some more room so he could store his things.

Snowflake only owned the clothes on his back, a cane, the hospital kimono and pants he never wanted to wear again, and Caboose's Pokeball.

Even after telling Melli he didn't need that much, the guy was verrrry insistent. Melli even moved to the top bunk voluntarily. He said it was due to Snowflake having a bad arm which would make climbing a struggle. It certainly wasn't an incorrect assessment.

His friend was so thoughtful, and he was sure to tell him that often.

Then Mai had stopped by, and she had a gift. It was the pants and shoes he originally wore when he came here apparently. She had washed them, to which Melli bowed and thanked her many times for some reason. They were white in color, which meant they would likely get dirty fast in a swamp like this.

He found them far more comfortable than the leggings and boots he was given though, so he tried to wear them as much as possible.

As the days turned into a week, he learned some new things about both Melli and himself.

First of all, Melli had nightmares.

Bad nightmares.

Snowflake used to have the same problem before Caboose evolved into a Sylveon, but ever since her powers let him sleep peacefully.

Melli didn't have that luxury, and hearing his friend quietly cry at night, or waking up gasping for air, was hard for him to tolerate. Skuntank had a difficult time climbing to the top bunk as well, and Snowflake hated how the two slept separately now. He offered to switch spots with Melli, but the Warden said something about not having him fall and die on his watch.

He just kept shutting the conversation down.

So when Melli began breathing heavily or tossing and turning, Snowflake would rouse Caboose and place her on the top bunk to calm his friend down. She always managed to quiet him, which Snowflake was glad for. He was a light sleeper to begin with, so it didn't bother him too much if Caboose was needed elsewhere for a short time. He would just lay awake and attempt to make out the details of the dark wooden panels above his head, listening to the rain pelt the outer tarp of their tent. It was loud, but not unpleasant to listen to.

Though he did find other issues with the weather.

It was apparently the rainy season, which meant frequent downpours. Unfortunately, as he discovered, shortly before the rains fell his scars and shoulder would ache. He didn't understand why they hurt, or what it had to do with the weather.

Melli said his old leg wound would itch sometimes before a bad storm, and it didn't bug him as much as it used to. Maybe Snowflake's scars would also bother him less after a while?

Still, Melli was never forced to sit for extended periods when the weather turned really bad.

For the most part Snowflake was able to ignore it. Small temperature changes or light drizzles didn't really affect him too badly. It just left the deepest scarring of his face, chest and shoulder with a dull ache or itch for half an hour at most.

Drastic weather shifts were the worst. During some lightning storms especially his upper body went from a dull itching to a continuous throb. Sometimes it would go away quickly, other times it would last a lot longer. Those were the days that left him curled up on the floor wishing for some higher being to end his suffering already.

It sucked having one good hand. Massaging the areas usually helped alleviate the aches a bit, but there were a lot of scars to cover and he couldn't do them all at once. He'd be forced to sit and choose which bothered him the most.

A verrrry hard choice.

Usually it was his shoulder. The pain went deep, all the way through the healed break and surrounding muscle. His fingers would twitch, usually the result of odd muscle spasms that sent a sharp twinge of pain all the way through his limb.

It didn't seem fair.

The arm barely worked, yet it was the thing giving him the most trouble. Was it nerve damage? The amount of scar tissue? Everything just healing wrong?

No. It really wasn't fair. But neither was life.

He'd just need to adjust.

At one point Caboose started poking his shoulder with her ribbons right before a horrible rain storm. It was going to be a rough one. His pain being bad enough to justify hiding in his tent and nursing it was a really good indicator.

"Caboose? What are you doing?"

"Bree?" She hopped onto his lap, standing on her hind legs for a better vantage point and sniffing the mutilated skin on his chest.

It was cute how she investigated his shoulder, until her innocent poking turned into a very hard smack from a ribbon feeler.

"HEY! What was that for?!" He shoved her to the floor, cradling the recently healed wound. It didn't hurt per se, but the spasm that impact caused was not pleasant.

Caboose cowered, looking up at him with those big innocent eyes of hers.

"… are you trying to help massage it?"

"Breeee!" She trilled, having gotten her message across.

Well, it's not like he had anything to lose.

"If you wish to help, you need to be more gentle. Just rub and squeeze the area to try and loosen the tension. Like this." He demonstrated by massaging her back. Caboose paid close attention, jumping back onto his lap and trying again.

He hadn't realized how strong her ribbon tentacles actually were, or how much bigger of an area she could reach at once. Far more than he could alone.

Okay. Showing her proved a good idea. The girl was a natural, and he could focus on alleviating the tightness in his face now.

"… Caboose, I love you and your flesh ribbons so much…. The making of biscuits feels nice too…"

"Breeeee!" The Sylveon stood up on her hind legs and began gently digging her paws into his chest. Yeah, that hit the spot…

The front door opened, Melli stepping inside and wringing the water from his hair. Skuntank waddled in right after, fur completely soaked down to the bone. He shook out the water, drenching Melli all over again. The Pokémon sluggishly made his way over to the stove where a roaring fire burned.

"It's an absolute downpour out there," Melli grabbed a towel and started drying his hair all over again. "Everyone is staying inside as long as possible. We should be fine, as long as the water doesn't reach Bogbound Camp- What in Sinnoh's name are you two doing?" He gawked at the sight before him. Snowflake rubbed the scared up side of his face while Caboose stayed busy on his neck and shoulder.

"Hello Melli! It turns out Caboose is a natural massage therapist too! You should ask her to check your leg scar whenever it starts bugging you."

Caboose chimed in agreement, not moving from her spot.

"… I am pretty sure she is just tenderizing the meat."

"Tenderizing? What do you mean?"

Melli shook his head and removed his shirt, wringing out as much water as possible before hanging it to dry and stepping further inside.

"Nothing. As long as she's helping with the pain, I suppose it's fine."

"She has such nice ribbon feelers. Verrrry nice, and multi functional."

"Please never call them that again."

"Ribbon feeler? But that's what they are."

"Well it just sounds creepy!"

Snowflake looked to the ceiling thoughtfully.

"What about flesh bows?"

"No."

"… tendrils?"

"That's even worse!"

"What should I call them then?"

"I don't know? Just ribbons! There, far less weird sounding!" Melli huffed and crossed his arms, taking a heavy seat on a mat by the stove next to his partner.

Snowflake hummed. Melli was an entertaining guy. The littlest things seemed to bother him, but that was just one of his fun quirks.

Caboose's face morphed into a devious smirk. She abandoned rubbing her human's shoulder and hopped onto the floor, quietly stalking her way behind Melli.

The Warden was too distracted to notice, until four wavy ribbons entered his peripheral vision.

"AYYYYYE!" Melli jumped to his feet with a high pitched shriek, holding his hands out defensively. "SKUNTANK HELP ME!"

Said Pokémon just lifted his head off the cushion and gave him a look.

Snowflake couldn't help but laugh. Caboose was chirping with joy, running around the room and back into her human's arm.

"You are verrry funny, Melli." Snowflake grinned.

"And you are verrry annoying!" Melli sat back down and grumbled. Snowflake frowned ever so slightly. Usually Melli had a bit more of a tantrum when Caboose pulled those jokes.

"Is something wrong, Melli? You seem off today."

"I am absolutely fine. No need for any talks or sympathy."

"Hmmm… if you say so."

Melli would talk when he was ready. Snowflake understood the feeling, and he didn't want to make his friend uncomfortable.

Instead he hummed a tune he couldn't name, stroking Caboose's back as her shoulder kneading became slower and slower. The little thing was starting to fall asleep.

"… you're horrible, you know that?"

"I am Snowflake. Not Horrible. You should know this." He smiled much to Melli's chagrin. Sighing, the Warden looked at the fire dancing before his eyes, voice quiet.

"I've been told I need to destroy a Pokémon and its offspring. They are believed to be a foreign species that escaped the rift, and both Diamond and Pearl Clans are in agreement that destruction would be the best option for the Pokémon already living here."

"What does the Galaxy Team think?"

"They wish to capture it for study, as well as the eggs. There is a lot of disagreement on that currently and nobody can come to a conclusion," He rubbed his temples, sighing. "As long as the rains aren't torrential tomorrow, Warden Ingo and I will be going in for a more indepth look at the situation."

"Awww, I wish I could come. This Pokémon sounds verrrry interesting." Snowflake commented, scratching Caboose behind the ear. She showed her gratitude by yawning and curling up on his lap for a nap.

"If getting electrocuted by a giant hairy bug thing is your idea of a good time," Melli rolled his eyes. "Just promise me you will stay out of trouble until I get back. I'll be out for a few days, so I won't be able to help you any. So do your best to NOT need my help."

"I have been doing fine so far."

"… your attempts at learning the local language?"

"I did nothing wrong!" Snowflake got defensive.

"You we're literally holding objects in front of the elderly pointing at them and repeating what you thought the word for it was." Melli deadpanned.

"How else do you expect me to learn?"

"Not by pointing at a bean cake and calling it a 'butt wipe!'"

Snowflake could feel his face heating up. That would explain why everyone was looking so horrified when he said the word and presented the food. At the time he thought they were reacting to his scars.

Apparently not…

"… but that's what those kids said it is called…"

Melli just face palmed with a loud, long groan.

"Look, from now on we can work on it together. I don't need you embarrassing yourself, and by extension me, with you wandering around being a weirdo."

"Thank you Melli! You really are the greatest."

Melli crossed his arms and nodded in agreement. "That's right, and don't you ever forget it!"

"So, can you tell me what the actual word for 'bean cake' is?" Snowflake smiled.

"Not now. I have a lot of prep work for tomorrow. The Highlands are treacherous this time of year."

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

Melli rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Actually, you can help me prepare some salt snacks for Lord Electrode. If there haven't been any mudslides blocking the way, I'd like to deliver some food when I'm there."

"Of course! Just lead the way." He saluted, gently picking Caboose off of his lap and setting her on his pillow.

"Very well," The Warden stood and grabbed a small trunk, which Snowflake recently learned was Melli's crafting table. "Sit with me and I'll show you how it's done. You better pay close attention, because I don't give repeat lessons."

The two sat side by side, the next several hours dedicated to making cakes for Lord Electrode.

"Crush those up smaller! Lord Electrode prefers his salt to be very well grounded. That is not how you use a pestle!

"I don't think I've ever used one before."

"You people are so weird. Never used a pestle, odd phrases, those stupid coats and dumb facial hair. Is that just the style where you are from?"

"Hmmmmm… if I remember I'll let you know!"

"Ugh! You are so useless I swear!"

The banter continued, both of them managing to create a massive basket of treats.

Snowflake sure hoped he'd be strong enough to meet this Pokémon someday. If Melli was his Warden, then surely he was an awesome Pokémon indeed.

XxxxxxxxxxxxX

"Wow, this flooding is crazy!" Snowflake couldn't help but gawk at how high the water was. When he first came to live here full time, the rainy season had just started. Given how much trouble the weather shifts had been giving him, he hadn't been out exploring much. Finally there was a day of no rain, and he took full advantage of it.

Well, he was trying to at least. Most of the Diamond Clan members were off carrying supplies to higher grounds, and Snowflake wasn't much help in that area. He did what he could to l pack up food and other supplies. It was tiring, but now everyone was off doing things he wasn't able to help with.

That did give him a chance to really check the water damage so far, which was pretty bad. Bogbound Camp had been evacuated, the Galaxy Team members stationed there currently seeking refuge with the Diamond Clan.

"WAH!" Snowflakes cane hit a particularly muddy spot and slipped, sending him tripping forward. Caboose jumped in to help catch him, wrapping her ribbons around his arm pushing him upwards. With her help he was able to catch himself on one knee.

"Thanks, Caboose." He smiled, lip twitching at the cold wet mud soaking through his pant leg.

He shouldn't have worn his white pants today. That was stupid, but he hadn't really thought about the mud.

"I'll need to ask Mai how she cleans mud out. She seems verrry good at laundry," Snowflake mumbled, standing upright with Caboose's support so he wouldn't slip again. "Let's find a rockier path. At least one with less mud."

"Bree!" Caboose cried in agreement, the two making their way back towards the Settlement. If he remembered correctly, there was a slight incline heading up to a rocky outcrop if he backtracked a bit. Snowflake likely wouldn't have the stamina to walk it by the time he got back though, at which point he could return to his tent for a rest.

Looking briefly towards the standing water, he spotted something unusual.

"Do you see that, Caboose?" Snowflake squinted, trying to get a clearer view of the debri pile caught between a few boulders. It was a lot of mud, wood, leaves, and whatever the heck that grey object was.

It looked like fur?

Was that a Pokémon? More likely a corpse, but he couldn't bring himself to just ignore it.

An investigation was needed.

Snowflake took his shoes and coat off, pulling his pant legs up to his knees and using his cane to feel for obstacles in the water.

"Keep an eye out for wild Pokémon. Let me know if you spot anything."

"Breee!" Caboose hopped on his shoulders, scanning the area as her human slowly made his way through the water.

It was cold, his legs sinking deeply into the mud if he stood in one spot for too long. The short journey was exhausting, constantly having to pull his feet out of deepening mud.

The water smelled terrible too, and his body wasn't at a hundred percent yet. Still, there was someone or something that may need help, and that debri pile was unstable. If he left to get help it could float away before he got back.

Caboose chirped when they arrived, hopping onto the boulder as soon as they were close enough.

"Oh thank Sinnoh." Snowflake huffed. He was breathing heavily, and it was only a fifteen foot walk through knee high water. The cane was too short to actually help him balance with the ground like this. Perhaps he should invest in something longer like a walking stick? At least until his body was at full strength.

Handing the cane to Caboose he tried to balance on a felled log hidden under the flood waters. Pulling away some stray sticks and leaf clumps the grey fuzz took on an actual form. There was a body attached to the long, matted tuft of fur. It was hard to recognize what the poor thing was, given it was completely caked in mud, blood and leaves.

It wasn't moving.

"This is a poor spot to park, little friend. It isn't safe here." Snowflake tried.

The creature didn't respond.

Heart sinking, Snowflake reached his hand closer gently placing it on what he assumed was its side.

A whine.

The creature didn't move, but it made a noise.

This tiny thing was still alive!

"Stay with us little guy! We'll get you in the hold and fixed up in no time. Caboose?"

"Breee!" His Sylveon helped hold the debri out of his way, letting him get his hand around the creature, pulling the sad ball of mud and fur to his chest. It growled and snarled weakly, but Snowflake wasn't deterred.

"I know it hurts, but Caboose and I will have you running at full capacity in no time. Just hold on a little longer."

Carefully, quickly, he made his way back toward land, Caboose holding his cane with her ribbons while riding on his shoulders once again. Breathing heavily, Snowflake shakily shoved the creature into his sling, cold mud and water chilling his bad arm and soaking through the fabric.

He may actually need to wear his hospital clothing again…. Unless Melli would be okay with him borrowing a shirt? He likely wasn't getting back until the next day, so Snowflake could probably get away with it until his clothes and sling dried out.

He realllllly didn't want to wear those hospital clothes ever again.

Caboose was able to carry his coat and keep it clean, while Snowflake grabbed his muddy shoes deciding it wasn't worth putting them back on. He was a filthy mess at this point. He'd only make them worse like this.

"O-okay! Let us get back to our home station, a-and get cleaned up." He panted. This was a harder journey than he expected. Caboose hopped off his shoulders and walked beside him. She didn't have any limbs left to help catch him if he fell again, so he would need to be extra cautious.

Especially for the sake of his new passenger.

He didn't even know what exactly he was carrying, just that it was grey with four short little legs and a snout slightly longer than Caboose's. Not to mention big ears. This thing had huuuge ears.

It reminded him of a dog or fox type Pokémon.

"Well, m-my little friend. S-since I don't know what to call you, a-a temporary nickname is in order." He rasped. Melli's tent was in sight now! They would be arriving shortly.

"I-I think… Buggy would be an appropriate name, g-given how we are now a… t-three car… train?" Wait, what the heck did Buggy even mean? And a train? It felt familiar, but he was too tired to try making better sense of it.

"W-we made it!" Snowflake practically collapsed on the front step, needing a few minutes to catch his breath. He only now realized how much mud he'd be tracking inside the tent.

Hopefully he could get it all cleaned up before Melli returned.

First things first though! His new friend desperately needed some serious customer service!

XxxxxxxxxxxxX

"Why is he here?" Melli pointed at the Survey Corps member and his Raichu. "I thought it would just be the two of us."

"Galaxy Team insisted on having a representative in this scouting mission, and Akari is still laid up from your first encounter." Ingo explain. The two were following Melli through the Wandering Woods. Akari had warned the Pearl Warden of what he might encounter, and it left left him feeling uneasy.

A giant nest enclosure made of electric charged silk that would leave anyone who touches it paralyzed. It was also sticky, ensnaring any human or Pokémon that came in contact with it. If this was the strange Pokémon's way of hunting, that would explain the missing Sneasels in the area, and no remains to be found. If this was truly a predator capable of taking down a creature with venomous claws like a Sneasel, it was certainly one to take seriously.

"It must be really strong. Akari is still suffering from some paralysis effects…" Rei was clearly uneasy about the whole thing, Raichu staying close to his side the whole time. He couldn't blame the kid. Usually he wasn't the one asked to do these types of dangerous missions, but at this point the Galaxy Team was out of options. Their forces were spread too thin, and with Akari out of commission that left Rei with the dirty work.

"Yes, it is extremely powerful, and highly defensive of her eggs. I don't think she will be happy to see more humans." Melli explained, ducking under a low branch and holding it for the others to pass.

"We don't have much choice." Ingo mumbled. "If we leave it to anyone else, they'd likely burn the forest down without even checking. We owe the poor soul that much at least." He paused when they reached the odd webbing, tilting his hat up trying to get a better look.

White silk everywhere. The tree canopy, ground, and everything in between. There were very few safe places to step.

"… it wasn't this big when I first saw it." Melli commented. "I don't know if we can go inside anymore. Not that it's a good idea to begin with."

"W-what kind of nest is that?!" Rei took a step back, eyes wide and mouth open in shock.

"A very special one I'd assume." Ingo fixed his hat and moved closer, Melli standing behind him with Rei. If this thing attacked, Ingo had the best chance of defeating it.

"W-wait! Are you sure that's a good idea-" Rei rushed forward trying to stop Ingo, only for Melli to block him. They had to show respect to this creature, not rush in attacking out of nowhere.

Ingo cleared his throat, hands held behind his back.

"Good day, strange Pokémon that came from the rift!" He started off with an introduction.

Melli watched carefully, Rei trying to keep his nerves in check. There was an eerie quiet here. Any wild Pokémon in the area must have left given the newcomer. Still, the unnatural silence was troubling.

Finally.

Rustling.

The silk on the webbing began to move, slowly at first but picking up in intensity. Six eyes peered out from a high spot in one of the branches. Ingo's hand hovered over the Pokeballs along his belt, ready to throw one if needed.

"I am Warden Ingo, and these are my compatriots. We wish to speak with you in person, if that is possible!" He continued.

The thing moved into the light, upper body now visible. Ingo froze, mind racing at the sight. Six blue eyes, two large and four smaller between the bigger ones. Yellow with blue markings. Long hair all over its body.

The sight was so familiar, yet foreign all at the same time.

Has he seen this Pokémon before?

"INGO!" Rei screamed.

The thing leapt right for him.

Ingo tried fumbling for a Pokeball, but it was too late.

The large insect collided with his face, knocking him hard on his back. He went down with a loud grunt. The creature didn't seem to care, too busy latching onto his chest and head with its many… legs? Arms? He wasn't sure what all the appendages were.

He couldn't see more than an underbelly of yellow, feeling the thing doing something to his forehead with its mandibles.

"Ingo! Hold on!" He could hear Melli and Rei rushing to his side, the creature spitting at them to stay back.

It went back to Ingo when they finally paused, angry snarls turning into… chirping? The mandibles actually tickled a bit.

Was this a greeting?

"Hold on you two!" Ingo ordered them to stay back. "It's not hurting me."

"What do you mean it's not hurting you?! What the hell is it doing then?!"

Ingo had to ponder Melli's question. "I think it's saying hello?"

The Pokémon gave a joyous screech, continuing whatever the heck it was doing.

"Excuse me ma'am, but may I please get up?"

It clicked, climbing farther down his body, though not abandoning her spot over his legs.

"D-do you know this thing?" Rei questioned.

"Not sure," Ingo sat up slowly, wincing at the sharp pain in his back. This thing hit hard, whether she meant to or not. "I apologize, but I fear I am missing most of my memories. Do I know you?"

The weird Pokémon grew distressed, clicking a chirping in quick succession.

If only he could understand Pokémon, this would be so much easier.

"I fear I do not follow." He picked up his hat from the ground, realizing the Pokémon had knocked it off in her greeting. She finally crawled off of Ingo and climbed back into her nest, re-emerging a few minutes later holding something in both front arms. She dropped them in Ingo's hands, his eyes going wide.

Pokeballs, but not the type he grew used to seeing in Hisui. These were metal, one of them empty and the other clearly damaged. Fiddling with the broken Pokeball, it became clear the clasp was completely stuck, along with a bad dent along the pin in the back. He'd need heavier duty tools just to have a shot at opening it.

He still had one good Pokeball, along with a sneaking suspicion as to what belonged inside. Working on instinct, Ingo held the empty ball up and recalled the strange creature.

"This is somebody's Pokémon?!" Melli gawked.

"It would appear so. I just don't know whose…" Ingo was at a loss, but given how eager this thing was to greet him, he was starting to wonder.

If only he could remember.

"Do you think this was one of your Pokémon? Before you lost your memories?" Rei voiced what Ingo was thinking.

"That's my hunch as well…" the Warden looked between both Pokeballs and the nest full of eggs. If this was indeed his Pokémon, then that really did change everything.

"… we can't kill them."

"Then what are we supposed to do with all of these eggs?" Melli interrupted. "I don't think Adaman and Irida will be pleased to learn we disobeyed them."

"At the moment, I don't care. This Pokémon belongs to me, and it looks like there is a second one of mine too," He held up the damaged ball, hoping whatever it housed hadn't starved to death. "Perhaps it's the ramblings of an old fool, but I know this is important. Please."

"I don't want to kill it either, but we can't let all these eggs hatch out here. What will happen to the forest when they emerge?" Rei frowned. Raichu seemed upset too, ears lowering at the thought.

Melli huffed, grumbling a few profanities before letting out a long, annoyed sigh.

"… call you stupid Lady already."

"Huh?" Ingo looked at him, Melli not making eye contact. He was putting on his usually haughty attitude.

"How do you expect to transport all these eggs safely without your Lady's help? I'm assuming you want her relocated to Jubilife, correct? They wanted to study these Pokémon after all."

Ingo couldn't believe Melli was actually helping him. He knew how the Diamond Warden felt about him, so the fact he was willing to go this far was more than a little surprising.

A pleasant surprise though.

"Melli… thank you."

"I haven't done anything. This was all your idea. Everyone can blame you."

"Right," Ingo grinned. Slowly standing up not to agitate his pulled spine, he called the weird Pokémon back out of its ball. "Ma'am, I fear your eggs are not safe here. Would you be willing to relocate them? I have a place in mind that should be safe."

The thing cried, rushing into its nests and starting to collect all its eggs into a bundle of silk.

Ingo played his flute, summoning Sneasler to his side. She hissed at seeing Melli, but a quick reprimand from the Pearl Warden made her settle, if not begrudgingly. The Lady looked down at him questioningly.

"My Lady. If you are willing, we require assistance in transporting these eggs to a safer location."

She seemed eager to help, removing the basket from her back and allowing the odd Pokémon to load up her brood. He finally noticed the large wound on her back. The poor girl was probably in a lot of pain, yet still willing to work so hard to protect her babies.

It reminded him of Lady Sneasler's dedication to her own kits.

He couldn't let her do all the work alone. Not in that state.

"Let's see. Perhaps I can help make this a little faster-"

A strong hand pulled him backwards, twisting his back even more. "Oh no you don't! I am NOT carrying you out of here if you end up paralysed like Akari did!"

"… are you volunteering to help?"

"Who said anything about that?!" Melli growled. "I am stopping you from giving yourself a heart attack, old man!"

"The mother is injured though. I don't think all of this movement is good for her."

Melli grimaced at the words, looking back at the insect currently loading eggs into the basket. His face twisted more, finally stamping his foot with a mumbled curse.

"Whatever, the Great Melli shall offer assistance, but ONLY because I feel generous, and I've built up some actual resistance to electric shocks."

"You have?" Rei asked. "That's so cool! How'd you do it?"

"Get shocked by Voltorbs and Electrodes a few hundred times and you'll start getting used to it." He said it while attempting to gently remove some eggs from the webbing, his hair already standing on end from the electricity. The mother initially hisses at him, but with Ingo's reassurance she quickly calmed down.

"O-oh." The teen looked down at his Raichu, the little thing giving him a wicked smirk.

"T-that's okay! I think I'm good for now. I-I'll just… stand over here…" Rei quickly retreated away from the webbing. At least he had common sense, for the most part.

That still left him wondering. If these really were his Pokémon, why had it taken this long for them to emerge? He'd been here for years, so surely they'd have shown themselves before now, especially with the one being pregnant.

It made no sense, but the mother's reaction confirmed to him that these were his Pokémon.

He couldn't wrap his head around it, and nothing new was coming to mind.

Perhaps Laventon would have some theories once they reached Jubilife.

XxxxxxxxxxxX

Has Snowflake acquired a new member for Team Snowflake/Menace? What will Melli think I wonder...

Fun fact, I was initially making it an egg he found on the debri, and I was gonna ask what readers thought it should be since at the time I had no idea what I wanted in this part of his roster. Then I watched some Jenna Marbles Dog videos and one of her dogs has inspired me for this particular Pokémon. Expect a very nasty personality from it, this thing is gonna be wild ;P